The following letter was published in an edited form, by the Australian Jewish News on 1 October 2009.
Is the front page screaming “Disgrace”, along with the usual hasbarah
and the twists and turns about human shields offered by Alan Dershowitz,
the best the AJN commentators can do in response to the Goldstone
report which highlights the disproportionate killing of civilians by
Israel?
Category: Editorials
Letter in The Age 01/10/09
CONGRATULATIONS to Amin Saikal (Comment, 30/9) for his thoughtful and courageous entry to the labyrinth of Middle East nuclear tensions. His thread of an exit strategy has many complicated turns but offers a credible hope that demands serious examination. Saikal canvasses diplomatic and political initiatives that might bring about a ”region-wide regime of arms control”, none so fanciful or utopian as to warrant the scorn or silence they are all too likely to meet in Australia.
Letter in The Age 01/10/09
CONGRATULATIONS to Amin Saikal (Comment, 30/9) for his thoughtful and courageous entry to the labyrinth of Middle East nuclear tensions. His thread of an exit strategy has many complicated turns but offers a credible hope that demands serious examination. Saikal canvasses diplomatic and political initiatives that might bring about a ”region-wide regime of arms control”, none so fanciful or utopian as to warrant the scorn or silence they are all too likely to meet in Australia.
This letter appeared, on behalf of the AJDS in a leading daily newspaper.
The following is a verbatim cut and paste from the UN Press Release on the Goldstone report. Elswhere, it is reported that only a summary of the report is available. In fact, the full 575 pages can be downloaded.
Note the following statement at parag 20. By refusing to cooperate with the Mission, the Government of Israel prevented it from meeting Israeli government officials, but also from travelling to Israel to meet with Israeli victims and to the West Bank to meet with Palestinian Authority representatives and Palestinian victims.
Uri Avneri is 80+, but he can still pack a punch. In this piece, about boycotts of Israel, he says many things, amongt which are
“…Anyway, there is no sense in arguing with those who pray for the disappearance of the sovereign State of Israel, rather than for the appearance of the sovereign State of Palestine at its side.
The argument is among those who want to see peace between the two states, Israel and Palestine. The question is: how can it be achieved? This is an honest debate and is generally conducted in a civil manner. ”
J Street [http://tiny.cc/vo73Z] sat down with a number of prominent Israelis, including former military and security officials, to discuss the importance of a two-state solution and J Street’s work supporting the President’s efforts to achieve such a resolution.
These interviews demonstrate the deep support among prominent Israeli former military officials, political leaders, diplomats, writers, and artists for the
strong American leadership that is critical to achieving a two-state solution and providing real peace and security to Israel as a Jewish democracy.
Middle East News Service Comments: The best indication I have seen so far that the US is slowly beginning to be perceived as the enemy in Israel has been in the writing of Australian Expatriate Isi Leibler who expounded on The case against Obama [http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1246443820172&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull]. Leibler is hard-liner but he cannot but he is not in the same league as Obama other critics like Anne Bayefsky. The Obama White House is certainly scaring the Israeli right. Dan Fleshler highlighted a good reason when he wrote:
The Israeli group Breaking the Silence has just released a collection of testimonies by Israeli soldiers that took part in the Gaza attack last December and January.
Bitter Lemons http://www.bitterlemons.org/ is an example of a website that can offer reasoned debate over controversial issues.
Given the controversy over Hamas (a terrorist organisation or a legitimate political force?), the opinions expressed in a recent issue (July 6, 2009 Edition 26) are well worth considering. Follow the link above, and think!
* The stick-and-stick approach has failed
by Ghassan Khatib
No political process can be successful without Hamas
* Test Hamas intentions separately
by Yossi Alpher